The National Research Center on Learning Disabilities produced this guide to assist state education agencies in working through the many issues associated with developing specific learning disability (SLD) identification policies and procedures. An introductory section describes current understanding of the issues surrounding SLD identification,…

This article argues that the mechanisms and research culture that support university academics when writing articles for publication in an iterative feedback cycle, and which are within the tenets of good pedagogic principles of formative assessment and feedback (Sadler, 1989), are often missing to support undergraduate students in their learning.…

Every year, New Zealand assesses students' learning progress through the National Educational Monitoring Project (NEMP). NEMP is a national, formative evaluation effort that provides New Zealand educators with an accurate picture of students' education progress at Year 4 and Year 8, which are roughly comparable to grades 3 and 7 in the United…

Accountability-oriented reforms demand immediate "and" continual gains on achievement test, for all students, and without diminishing other outcomes or undermining instruction. This paper describes a framework for aligning classroom assessment and external testing with the aim of negotiating these seemingly contradictory goals. The framework…

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to explore the usefulness of a simplified version of cognitive response analysis (CRA) as a formative evaluation tool for health education materials developed for small, unfunded projects. Design/methodology/approach: A group of women (n=15), aged between 25 and 50 years, provided cognitive responses (CRs)…

Those identified with high quality child care, early education, and family support (ECE) are experiencing new trends that are interacting with old problems. This article summarizes the old problems and new trends faced by ECE. The author wants to define their role in the emerging system and influence policies that will affect it. This article also…

The "Society for the Relief of Half Orphan and Destitute Children" was established so that the children of "poor but worthy parents" who needed to could "go to their daily labors" knowing their children "would be trained for some practical, useful course for life" and "taught their duties and responsibilities as members of society." Since that…

This Education Policy Brief examines the research regarding the efforts occurring in the United States to consolidate school corporations or form cooperative agreements for shared services. The brief also examines those policy levers which are contributing to the elevated discussion concerning consolidation and shared services in Indiana. Based…

Many people believe that art education is important, but few can say exactly why. In this book, are the results of the first in-depth research on the "habits of mind" that are instilled by studying art--habits the authors argue that could have positive impacts on student learning across the curriculum. "Studio Thinking" provides art teachers with…

Underage drinking is a significant problem in the United States: Alcohol is the primary contributor to the leading causes of death among adolescents. As a result, communitywide strategies to prevent underage drinking are more important than ever. Such strategies depend on the involvement and education of adolescents, parents, law enforcement …

This report extends previous Center explorations of the status of organized efforts to provide student supports. In 2005 we did a policy and practice analysis of school improvement planning guides to determine how student supports were formally integrated into school improvement planning. We followed this, in 2006, with analyses of a sample of…

Proformative evaluation--first introduced in Scriven's (2006) "The great enigma: An evaluation design puzzle"--"is motivated, like formative evaluation, by the intention to improve something that is still developing, but unlike formative, the improvement is only possible by taking action, hence proactive instead of reactive, hence both, hence…

This paper reports the results of a pilot in-service teacher training program undertaken in China from 2001 to 2004. Upon completion, the in-service teachers were awarded a Bachelor of Arts degree (non-honor) specializing in English Language Education. Many interesting findings resulted from this pilot program. By integrating low- and…

Many electronic portfolios become shining but superficial collections instead of environments for nurturing insight. Instructors must balance instructional time between perfecting the technical expertise of the student and fully developing the critical expertise needed for the student to become a thoughtful scholar. In a deliberate move, I have…

International teaching assistants (ITAs) teach undergraduate science courses in American universities in ever growing numbers as they contend with a host of pedagogic, cultural, and language issues in an unfamiliar educational setting. Yet little is known about their experiences and development as new teachers. This study focuses on six ITAs who…